Chapter 77

Help me, Caleb!

Suddenly, I remember the last time I met Neko at the Security Headquarters.

It was when I received a commendation for Ennes’s arrest and investigation cooperation.

“I owe you so much. Thank you so much.”

Neko kept thanking me and gave me a commendation certificate and prize money.

There wasn’t really a formal award ceremony or anything; it was quietly conducted in Neko’s team office at the Security Headquarters.

I’m comfortable with that and like it better. Rather than unnecessarily drawing aggro.

“How did it feel to arrest your superior?”

I asked jokingly, but Neko was serious.

“I knew the Security Headquarters was corrupt, but I didn’t know it was to this extent. Honestly, it was a big shock.”

“Was he a superior you were close to?”

“He was the person who taught me investigation right after I joined the company.”

So this kid now has her investigation partner at the Security Headquarters kidnapped by Black Dog and probably dead, and she was betrayed by her superior?

That’s pitiful.

“I don’t know how many more people like this are in the Security Headquarters. I need to find them.”

She spoke boldly, but Neko’s ears were lying down sadly to the sides. Usually they perk up.

“Caleb.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know about the Security Headquarters organizational chart?”

I know roughly.

Under one Security General, there are Chief Administrator, Legal Officer, and Inspector in order, and below them are Security Officers at the bottom.

Therefore, Neko is at the bottom. However, she’s the senior among Security Officers, so she’s in a position to command other Security Officers’ operations, and she might get promoted to Inspector soon. There’s a vacant position after all.

But she wasn’t aiming for just Inspector level.

“I want to become Security General.”

Your dream is big.

It’s not just about being good at beating up criminals; you’d need political skills too.

“Soren has tons of organizations that live outside the law. Black Dog and the Magic University are representative examples.”

“Why the university?”

“The institution itself is just too powerful, so the Security Headquarters can’t do anything forceful to them.”

I see.

Indeed. Soren’s Magic University is among the most powerful wizard organizations even when compared to other labyrinth cities. They even have prestigious magic schools like Bertengga together in Soren.

“Do you know why this happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s because of possessors.”

“……”

“It’s because people’s political views on otherworld possessors are so severely divided. From extreme hardliners who think they should all be killed, to moderates who think we should cooperate with them, and even followers who think we should serve and follow them.”

“What do you want to do, Neko?”

I asked tentatively, feeling somehow guilty.

“I think those people should be operated under a registration system. The Security Headquarters would manage all of their identities, form regular parties, and send them into the labyrinth at regular intervals. In return, we’d guarantee all the rights of free citizens and protect them from social persecution.”

Indeed, it’s the most orderly and stable system.

“Possessors are the core key to my plan. Soren is a labyrinth city that revolves around the labyrinth anyway. If we gather possessors, take responsibility for their safety in the name of the Security Headquarters, and bring together their knowledge, the Security Headquarters can become the strongest force in the labyrinth.”

“……”

“Based on that, I’ll organize all of Soren’s chaotic power structure and increase central control. So that only the Security Headquarters becomes the sole force capable of managing this city.”

Neko gently held my hand that was holding the commendation certificate.

“Caleb has excellent combat power, outstanding reasoning and investigation abilities, and is righteous. From my perspective, you’re much more reliable than most of my colleagues at the Security Headquarters. Although you’re not a Security Officer… Instead, you’re a wizard affiliated with the Magic University. I’m also a university graduate. I want to rely on school connections.”

“……”

“I have a feeling that someday we’ll work together again.”

Neko’s ears perked up again. Blood color returned to her ear tips.

“Please help me then, Caleb. Then I’ll do anything for Caleb too.”

***

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think it will work.”

I declined as politely as possible to Lizard, who was the team leader of Security Team 2.

“Hmm……”

Lizard didn’t back down immediately.

“Caleb. Those sleep thieves are causing great damage to all 4th floor adventurers. Of course, it’s the role of the Security Headquarters and Adventurer Guild to deal with them.”

Lizard said.

“As a fellow 4th floor adventurer, don’t you think about helping?”

“Aren’t there many parties more experienced on the 4th floor than us?”

“That’s right. But Senior Neko seems to find Caleb’s party most reliable.”

Honestly, I want to help too.

If it were a game.

Then I would have immediately accepted this event and gone to catch Ingelram. Even if I lost, I could just restart the game.

And if things went well, I’d gain a lot in the long term. I’d have connections with the Security Headquarters.

But…….

‘Right now my life is on the line.’

And it’s not just my life, but I’m carrying the lives of three additional party members.

The bigger problem is that I don’t even know who Ingelram is.

From what Neko told me through Security Team 2, that guy seems to be a famous wizard who went up to the 5th floor, and fighting such a skilled opponent recklessly without any information would be crazy.

“If the situation allows, of course I’d help Security Officer Neko.”

I have no choice.

“We won’t take the initiative. I’m sorry.”

Don’t make promises you can’t keep. What if I said I’d help and then Ingelram turns out to be too strong? What then? Should we run away by ourselves? Abandoning Neko?

I can’t answer carelessly in this situation.

“……I see.”

Security Officer Lizard nodded calmly.

“I understand. Excuse me. And thank you for arresting the replica manufacturing suspects.”

Rilwid’s party had already attacked us once and got beaten up.

I fed Rilwid superconductivity and knocked him unconscious, summoned Cumulonimbus, and Aimus cracked open one thief’s head with an iron rod.

And when Yernil aimed her bow, all the enemies tucked their tails.

“We’ll escort Rilwid’s party and process them.”

Rilwid confessed obediently when Security Team 2 came.

Because once they got outside the exit gate, the replica manufacturing charges would all be exposed anyway.

“Good work. Caleb. And everyone in Caleb’s party. Let’s meet at headquarters next time. Let me introduce myself belatedly – my name is Security Officer Dreta. Please come find me at headquarters.”

Security Team 2’s leader, Lizard Dreta, shook hands with us, then handcuffed Rilwid’s party and left.

“Will it be okay? Brother.”

Backstab asked while watching their retreating figures.

“What do you mean?”

“That Security Officer cat. From the looks of it, she’s going to go catch the sleep thieves by themselves.”

“……”

Probably so.

“But Caleb, aren’t we going to the steel mill anyway?”

Aimus asked.

“That’s right.”

Because I want to use the special ability modification hammer there.

“Then Caleb, couldn’t we end up in combat with the sleep thieves there?”

Monk brother also wants to help Neko catch the sleep thieves.

So since we might face combat threats anyway, let’s cooperate with Neko instead. Something like that, right?

“That’s true, but……”

“We don’t need to be desperate about the steel mill. We can come next time. We’ll use Wizard’s Eye to scout, and if Ingelram is too strong an opponent, we’ll avoid him. As originally planned.”

“If Security Officer party and sleep thief party are fighting, will you help the Security Officers?”

Yernil asked, assuming another situation.

“……Depending on the situation.”

Everyone seems to be in a lukewarm mood.

Our party members are too kind.

Especially this Backstab kid was making Black Dog 2nd Division jokes and being sarcastic in front of the Security Officer, but now that we’ve refused, he seems bothered.

But honestly, I feel the same way.

Wasn’t Neko the person who kept telling me not to overdo it when she asked for the Black Dog infiltration mission?

But she must be really desperate to ask me for help with this dangerous task.

‘That’s how short they are on strength.’

The Security Headquarters has to meet certain combat standards according to rank.

Like modern police or military personnel taking physical fitness evaluations.

Security Officers are usually at the adventurer level of floors 1 to 4.

Neko would be about 4th floor level too. That’s why she assessed herself. That her party alone would be difficult.

“Isn’t there some way we could help Security Officer Neko?”

Yernil didn’t look satisfied even after getting revenge on Rilwid.

“A way……”

Am I getting swept up by the atmosphere? I keep thinking about it too.

***

“Security Officer!”

Security Officer Dreta, leader of Security Team 2, who was leaving to find the exit room, heard Caleb’s voice urgently chasing after him.

“Huff…… Huff……”

Caleb’s party barely caught up with Dreta’s Security Team 2 and the Rilwid group they were escorting.

Thanks to running for a while, Caleb, whose stamina was dropping, was breathing heavily.

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s bothering me somehow…… Huff…… Huff……. I’m worried.”

“Are you going to help Security Officer Neko?”

Dreta was delighted.

“……”

Caleb nodded while bent over, catching his breath for a moment.

“Yes. And I have a good method.”

Caleb said.

“What method?”

“We use the magic equipment that Rilwid’s party has!”

“Yes?”

“All you Security Officers don’t have magic equipment, so you’re wearing raincoats, masks, and goggles for activities right now. If we strip what Rilwid’s party is wearing, we’ll find volcanic ash defense measures, and it’ll help in combat too. Let’s share and use them with us.”

“But Caleb, these are evidence, so they need to be transferred to Security Headquarters for investigation. In principle.”

“But catching the sleep thieves is higher priority, right?”

“Of course that’s true, but still, I can’t personally misappropriate evidence. At least the owner is still listed as Rilwid.”

“Then what if the owner died?”

“Yes?”

“Rilwid’s party attacked us earlier too. So we killed one of them. You saw it.”

Caleb said.

“How about this? Actually, Rilwid didn’t surrender then.”

“……”

“And we had no choice but to kill all the suspects during combat.”

“W-wait a minute.”

“So since we can’t just throw corpses and items beyond the exit gate, we used the magic equipment to catch the sleep thieves first. How about reporting it like this?”

“Caleb!”

Dreta shouted in shock.

“What are you saying! That won’t work! We are……Huh?”

Lizard Security Officer Dreta sensed something strange.

It was like the coolness felt when a cold-blooded creature’s body temperature drops after falling into a cold place. That instinctively approaching ominousness stabbed somewhere in the Security Officer’s mind with sharp intuition.

“……”

The Security Officer stepped back.

“You.”

He said.

“Are you……A sleep thief?”

“What are you talking about? The card is attached right here. Seventeen people.”

Caleb pointed to the card on his shoulder.

“That’s why I’m asking if you’re a sleep thief.”

Dreta tore off the card attached to his shoulder.

Then another card appeared underneath.

[Current 4th Floor Adventurer Party: 16]

“What?”

Caleb frowned.

“Is that the real card?”

“You tear off your card and pull out the real one underneath!”

“No. Shit, look at these guys using their heads. They made a fake by covering the top with disguise magic……”

“No.”

The Security Officer quickly drew his sword.

“The one underneath was the fake.”

“……”

“The real number is seventeen. Prepare for combat!”

“……Ha.”

Caleb burst into laughter.

“This damn card keeps messing things up.”

He raised his wand.

“Disguise Release. It’s been a while, Rilwid.”

Elf businessman Rilwid’s face turned pale.

***

“There’s no way to help Neko.”

I just firmly declared it. To strengthen the hearts of the two soft-hearted kids(?) and the monk whose male hormones are gradually weakening.

“There’s no way.”

Aimus nodded as if giving up.

“Yes, not yet.”

“Not yet?”

“There’s no way because we don’t know about that guys’ party.”

“Then……”

“Let’s quickly find the steel mill first. Before the sleep thieves. And let’s go in there and make some preparations.”

The preparations are as follows:

First, find and use the well that appears at a fixed location inside the steel mill. To give Aimus, Yernil, and Backstab new skills.

Second, use Vulant’s hammer to modify or strengthen party members’ special abilities.

“This was our original goal up to here. Let’s add just one more line.”

Observe Ingelram’s party while hidden from a distance.

What equipment they’re wearing, what classes they are, what skills and magic they might use, etc.

Then devise attack strategies in real time.

We’ll exchange message transmissions with Neko’s party to time the ambush.

“But if we observe from a distance, won’t they be in disguise? Then can we observe them?”

Backstab asked.

“If combat doesn’t break out, they won’t release their disguises, and if combat breaks out, it’ll be with Neko’s party, so we’d have to rush to help immediately, right?”

“There’s a way to release those guys’ disguises from a distance.”

All three people fell into great confusion.